The Friendliest War Might Be Coming To An End

Posted on August 2, 2018

For nearly half a decade, Canada and Denmark have been engaged in the world’s friendliest war over a territorial dispute.

If only all disputes were as civilized as the war over Hans Island between Canada and the Kingdom of Denmark. They have been battling for ownership of the island since 1973, but instead of weapons and bombs, they fought with flags and alcohol.

Every now and then, the army of one of the countries land on Hans Island to raise a flag and leave a box of their favorite local alcoholic beverage – Canadians leave behind a crate of whisky while the Danish leave a crate of schnapps.

Hans Island only measures 1.3 kilometers across and is literally nothing more than a big rock in the middle of the Arctic. This means that the dispute has been more about principle than actual land and resources.

It is nice to hear that Canada and Denmark are finally back to negotiations, but any 5-year-old could’ve just drawn a line across the middle of the island and called it even.